My Area UK

Shaftesbury

Shaftesbury is a town in Dorset, England, with a population of around 7,314. It has one pharmacy and around 11 restaurants and cafés, with 4 bus stops and Gillingham railway station 6.3km away. The average sold house price is around £367,534, and there were around 63 recorded street crimes in June 2026, most commonly anti-social behaviour. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Shaftesbury area — all from official UK open data.

On deprivation, the Dorset area is around the average in England (IoD2025). The wider council area has around 379,579 residents at roughly 152 people per km².

Council
Dorset
County
Dorset
Constituency
North Dorset
Police force
Dorset
54/ 100

My Area Score

Good

Ranked 123rd of 294 English council areas — better than 58% of them.

Low crime85
Home affordability30
Affordable rents51
Good schools16
Life expectancy86
Low deprivation59
Employment82
Low council tax0

A percentile blend of eight open measures (100 = best in England); bars show this area’s England-wide percentile on each. See the rankings · methodology

Weather

11°CSunny

  • Today: 11° / 6° · 18% rain
  • Tomorrow: 11° / 5° · Sunny

Source: WeatherAPI

Daylight

Sunrise 07:04Sunset 16:40

9h 36m of daylight today

Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec

Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk

Air quality

25US AQI · Good

Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)

Source: WAQI · Bournemouth, United Kingdom

Air pollution (PM2.5)

  • 5.5 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
  • 4.1% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution

Lower is better for both figures.

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024

Crime

61 reported · August 2026▲ 13% YoY

  • Anti-social behaviour24
  • Violence & sexual offences13
  • Shoplifting8
  • Criminal damage & arson4

1 stop & searches · mostly stolen goods

Neighbourhood team: Gillingham and Shaftesbury · Dorset

Local policing priorities

  • Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Location: Gillingham Issue: Anti-social behaviour remains a persistent issue in parts of the town, impacting…
  • Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Location: Shaftesbury Issue: Overall ASB is persistent in parts of the town which is impacting local resident…

Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)

Road safety

675 reported road collisions (2025)

215 killed or seriously injured · 893 casualties · 17.8 collisions per 10,000 residents

Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)

Food hygiene

106 food businesses within 2 miles

  • 82 rated 4–5 ★ (77 top)
  • 1 rated 0–2 (poor)

Source: Food Standards Agency

Flood risk

No active flood warnings nearby.

Buses & trains

  • Nearest station: Gillingham (6.3 km)
  • 4 bus stops within ~½ mile

Live trains from Gillingham (Dorset) (6.3 km):

Loading live departures…

Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail

House prices

£328,589 average▼ 0.4% YoY

Across Dorset · to 2026-08

Detached£519,998
Semi-detached£333,127
Terraced£267,978
Flat£169,474

Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)

Private rents

£1,056 average monthly rent▲ 4.9% YoY

  • 1 bed £732
  • 2 bed £967
  • 3 bed £1,191

Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08

Affordability

9.9× house price to earnings

A typical home costs 9.9 times median annual pay (9.5× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).

Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025

Property sales

5,771 property sales in the last 12 months

12 months to May 2026

A busier or quieter market is not by itself good or bad. Monthly counts are small and volatile, so only the annual total is shown.

Source: HM Land Registry UK HPI, 12 months to 2026-05

Fuel prices

  • Cheapest petrol: 158.9p · Esso (6.7 km)
  • Cheapest diesel: 189.9p · Esso (6.7 km)

3 stations within ~8 miles

Source: CMA fuel price scheme

EV charging

7 charging locations within ~8 km

  • 3 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
  • Fastest nearby: 120 kW
  • Nearest: Tesco Superstore-Shaftesbury (0 km)

Source: Open Charge Map

Sport & leisure

  • Swimming pools1
  • Sports pitches21
  • Playgrounds11

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

Population

379,579 residents in Dorset · 152/km²

  • Under 16: 15%
  • 16–64: 55%
  • 65+: 30%

Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)

Internal migration

  • Moves in from elsewhere in the UK20,787
  • Moves out to elsewhere in the UK16,709
  • Net moves+4,078

Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025

Deprivation

Around the average in England

Ranked 174 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)

2% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%

Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025

Council tax

£2,765 a year · Band D, 2026-27

Most homes here are Band C (23% of 187,680)

A £1,843
B £2,151
C £2,458
D £2,765
E £3,379
F £3,994
G £4,608
H £5,530

Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27

Schools

184 schools · 49,648 pupils

119 primary · 18 secondary · 47 other

Ofsted: 67 of 85 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (79%)

157 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)

Secondary schools:

  • Beaminster SchoolGood
  • Dorset Studio SchoolGood
  • Shaftesbury SchoolGood
  • The Blandford SchoolGood
  • The Swanage SchoolGood
  • The Woodroffe SchoolGood
  • Wey Valley AcademyGood
  • All Saints' Church of England AcademyRequires improvement
  • Budmouth Academy WeymouthRequires improvement
  • Queen Elizabeth's SchoolRequires improvement
  • Ferndown Upper School
  • Gillingham School
  • Lytchett Minster School
  • Sturminster Newton High School
  • The Gryphon School
  • The Purbeck School
  • The Sir John Colfox Academy
  • The Thomas Hardye School

Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Dorset

Care & health services

388 CQC-registered services

  • Care homes120
  • GP practices61
  • Dentists85
  • Homecare agencies87
  • Hospitals & hospices14

CQC ratings: 97% of rated services Good or Outstanding

Source: Care Quality Commission · Dorset

Heritage & planning

  • Not in the Green Belt
  • 279 listed buildings within ~1.5 km

Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)

Planning decisions

683 applications decided

91.7% granted · 626 granted, 57 refused

Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2

Your MP

Simon Hoare

Conservative

North Dorset

Recent votes:

  • NoDraft Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2026
  • NoDraft Code of Practice on Access and Unfair Practices During the Recognition and Derecognition Process
  • NoNorthern Ireland Troubles Bill: Third Reading
  • AyeNorthern Ireland Troubles Bill Committee: New Clause 12

Source: UK Parliament

Council control

Liberal Democrat majority

  • Lab 2
  • Con 30
  • LD 42
  • Grn 4
  • Oth 4

Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)

Amenities nearby

  • Schools4
  • GPs & clinics1
  • Pharmacies2
  • Supermarkets2
  • Parks & greens9
  • Restaurants & cafés13

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

Local businesses

20,570 active business enterprises in the area

Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)

Jobs

141 jobs advertised · £38,126 avg

e.g. Financial Services Administrator, Installer, Postal Delivery Driver (Hiring Immediately)

Source: Adzuna

Local economy

£737 median full-time weekly pay

2.3% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits

£27,403 disposable income per head (2024)

Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI

Energy efficiency

43% of homes rated EPC C or above

Most common band: D · 186,790 certificates

9.9% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)

Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty

Grid electricity

33% low-carbon electricity

Gas 52% · Solar 18% · Imports 15% · Wind 7%

220 gCO₂/kWh · high intensity

Latest estimate for South England · National Grid ESO

Health

Life expectancy: 85.4 yrs women · 82.1 yrs men

Healthy life expectancy: 65.6 women · 65.3 men

66% of adults overweight or obese

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025

Wellbeing

  • Life satisfaction7.6
  • Feeling worthwhile7.9
  • Happiness yesterday7.6
  • Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)2.9

Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23

Health services

4 GP surgeries · 2 pharmacies in SP7

  • Hmp Guys Marsh
  • Adhd Service - Clinical Partners
  • Bnssg Clinical Partners Rtc Adhd

Source: NHS Organisation Data Service

Local petitions

Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in North Dorset:

Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05

Notable places nearby

  • Shaftesbury F.C. · 0.2 km

    Shaftesbury Football Club are a football club based in Shaftesbury, Dorset, England. The club is affiliated to the Dorset County Football Association and is a FA chartered Standard club. They are currently members of…

  • The Breeze (North Dorset) · 0.3 km

    The Breeze (North Dorset) was an Independent Local Radio station serving North Dorset from 1995 to 2020.

  • Shaftesbury · 0.3 km

    Shaftesbury is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is on the A30 road, 20 miles west of Salisbury and 23 miles north-northeast of Dorchester, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hillt…

  • Shaftesbury Town Hall · 0.4 km

    Shaftesbury Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street, Shaftesbury, Dorset, England. The town hall, which is the meeting place of Shaftsbury Town Council, is a Grade II listed building.

  • North Dorset (constituency) · 0.4 km

    North Dorset is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Simon Hoare of the Conservative Party.

  • Gold Hill, Shaftesbury · 0.4 km

    Gold Hill is a steep cobbled street in the town of Shaftesbury in the English county of Dorset. The view looking down from the top of the street has been described as "one of the most romantic sights in England."

Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)

Compare Dorset with nearby areas

Frequently asked questions

Where is Shaftesbury?
Shaftesbury is a town in Dorset, England, in the Dorset local authority.
What is the population of Shaftesbury?
Shaftesbury has an approximate settlement population of 7,314.
How deprived is Shaftesbury?
The Dorset local authority, which includes Shaftesbury, is around the average in England on the IoD2025.